I just went through the millimeter-wave scan a few days ago. So somewhere, there's a TSA screener feeling inadequate.
Though on the way back, when we were leaving San Francisco, they weren't even using their fancy scanners, just the old-fashioned metal detectors because the screening lines were backed up out the door. So remember the first rule, kiddos:
Security can go take a flying leap when the lines get long.Oddly enough, I had gone in with the mindset of forcing them to do a patdown, but like Aqizzar all I found myself giving a shit about was getting it over with and through to the terminal, especially when my four-year-old daughter began freaking out about the whole security screening process.
Can't say I blame her. The whole travel experience in general was enough to have me ready to say, "F**k it, we're driving to South Dakota next summer." I'm tired of having to engage in a bunch of silly "duck and cover" style security measures that frankly are more there for public perception than actual security, tired of being nickel-and-dimed-and-50-dollar-billed to death by charges, and really tired of the stratified passenger "class" system.
Used to be, there was first-class and there was coach. First-class got nicer seats up front and maybe a better meal and a little curtain to make things quieter for them. Now, there's like five different varieties of first-class (I saw First-Class, Platinum, Executive Platinum, Priority, and AAdvantage), and the differences are more stark. First-class gets a free meal. The rest of us scumbags have to pay $4 if we want a f**king bag of peanuts. I figure pretty soon the actual cabin will be first-class only, and the rest of us will be "steerage" class riding down in the cargo hold like the immigrants on steamships used to be.
I used to love to fly. Now it's my least favorite mode of transportation.